Foods you thought had fewer calories and discovered they didn't when you paid attention

13

Replies

  • jmauerhan
    jmauerhan Posts: 82 Member
    I guess fruit is my only answer. I've been counting calories for over a decade, so I don't feel it's surprising that any food from a restaurant, coffee place, package, whatever is going to have more calories than one would expect or think is reasonable.

    But I hate that a whole can of green beans is like 70 calories and a can of pears is 210 (to use an example from my lunch today). Fruit is "healthy" but I have to train myself to pick more veggies than fruits to get my 5 servings a day.
  • Avacodo. .who knew they had so many calories. .here I was eating them religiously not anymore :(
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    mavers1 wrote: »
    Does anybody have any foods that surprised you once you started paying attention to what you were eating?
    Chocolate mousse was a real surprise for me.

    I stopped it cold turkey once I saw how carby it was.
  • mom2mcjc
    mom2mcjc Posts: 89 Member
    Cheese, cheese, cheese.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Cheese I knew, just never realized how small 100 calories of cheese is!
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    Troutsy wrote: »
    pepperdove wrote: »
    I work at Starbucks, and I will tell you that any of our foods are pretty much going to kill your diet for the day. It's brutal.

    When I started counting calories I sadly gave up my peppermint mochas. :(

    I did, too. But somehow for me it was like this huge realization "I could have a Snickers bar? I could have a full size donut?" (instead) -- and so I am happy not to have the mochas and have those other things instead (from time to time, not every day of course)!
  • paradi3s
    paradi3s Posts: 343 Member
    i remember eating in chow king (chinese fast food) and when i logged in the chao fan i just ate, it was 607 calories! made me realize that i should lessen my visits to fast food places haha
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
    Troutsy wrote: »
    pepperdove wrote: »
    I work at Starbucks, and I will tell you that any of our foods are pretty much going to kill your diet for the day. It's brutal.

    When I started counting calories I sadly gave up my peppermint mochas. :(

    I did, too. But somehow for me it was like this huge realization "I could have a Snickers bar? I could have a full size donut?" (instead) -- and so I am happy not to have the mochas and have those other things instead (from time to time, not every day of course)!

    I did the same thing! I did however did a happy dance when I realized how much money I saved by switching from the Peppermint Mocha to Green Tea lemonaid :)
  • adidrea
    adidrea Posts: 275 Member
    Starbucks! I realized not too long ago that my go-to beverage was 500 calories. Ughhhh.

    Also...nuts. I snacked on almonds because they were a "healthy" snack, but if you eat more than about 20 that's up in the 200 calorie range! I probably easily ate 50 in a sitting before I realized it.
  • ncfitbit
    ncfitbit Posts: 1,058 Member
    edited January 2015
    I am a big fan of Steak N Shake when it comes to fast food diner stuff...used to get the Frisco Melt, no fries & water to drink. Then I realized it's 750 cal, and 53g fat (although I don't make a point to eat low fat that is a lot).

    I still opt for no fries and water to drink when I go there...but getting a double steakburger no cheese (390 cal, 21g fat) or if I'm hungrier even a triple (510 cal, 30g fat) is just as good and just as greasy-indulgent and satisfying to me. So I can get a double, plus cottage cheese with pineapple and it's still not even remotely close to the Frisco Melt calories.

    Thank you for this! Although my new way of life seeks to avoid deprivation, I had really thought I would never really be able to "afford" going to Steak and Shake again (Frisco melt was my favorite!). No kidding, a little tear would well up in my eye when I thought about it.
    This is an excellent suggestion! :)
  • Canwehugnow
    Canwehugnow Posts: 218 Member
    Cheese. :(
  • jnv7594
    jnv7594 Posts: 983 Member
    edited January 2015
    Well, I've been shocked by many things since I started weighing everything out, but I think my biggest shock came a couple of weeks ago when my daughter went out to eat at Perkins. I hadn't had a chicken pot pie in a while, and it was calling my name, lol, so I got one. It was decent sized. Anyway, I went to log it later. Talk about a calorie/fat bomb. Wowza. 1610 calories and 118 grams of fat for one pot pie. This amount doesn't even include the salad they give you on the side that is covered with dressing. Anyway, I knew pot pie was calorie heavy, but good grief I didn't expect that. Luckily I hadn't eaten the whole thing. I brought some of it home. Also, just pie in general is a pretty big calorie bomb. I got to looking at their menu after I logged my dinner. The calorie count on most desert pies is insane.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    Troutsy wrote: »
    Troutsy wrote: »
    pepperdove wrote: »
    I work at Starbucks, and I will tell you that any of our foods are pretty much going to kill your diet for the day. It's brutal.

    When I started counting calories I sadly gave up my peppermint mochas. :(

    I did, too. But somehow for me it was like this huge realization "I could have a Snickers bar? I could have a full size donut?" (instead) -- and so I am happy not to have the mochas and have those other things instead (from time to time, not every day of course)!

    I did the same thing! I did however did a happy dance when I realized how much money I saved by switching from the Peppermint Mocha to Green Tea lemonaid :)

    Definitely! My girlfriends and I go out to a local place and some of 'em prefer the drinks similar to Starbucks mochas/lattes for around $5 apiece, I now get black coffee or cold brew and sometimes a small pastry and my total is never more than $3!
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    ncfitbit wrote: »
    I am a big fan of Steak N Shake when it comes to fast food diner stuff...used to get the Frisco Melt, no fries & water to drink. Then I realized it's 750 cal, and 53g fat (although I don't make a point to eat low fat that is a lot).

    I still opt for no fries and water to drink when I go there...but getting a double steakburger no cheese (390 cal, 21g fat) or if I'm hungrier even a triple (510 cal, 30g fat) is just as good and just as greasy-indulgent and satisfying to me. So I can get a double, plus cottage cheese with pineapple and it's still not even remotely close to the Frisco Melt calories.

    Thank you for this! Although my new way of life seeks to avoid deprivation, I had really thought I would never really be able to "afford" going to Steak and Shake again (Frisco melt was my favorite!). No kidding, a little tear would well up in my eye when I thought about it.
    This is an excellent suggestion! :)

    I am so glad it was helpful!!!

  • CyeRyn
    CyeRyn Posts: 389 Member
    I know fast food is always high in calories however when I was pregnant I really loved indulging in Dairy Queens 4 pc chicken tender meal. Thinking maybe it was around 1000 calories, I found out has 1700 calories! It's not even filling. I wont touch it ever again. lol
  • LifeInTheBikeLane
    LifeInTheBikeLane Posts: 345 Member
    corinic91 wrote: »
    I was shocked what a serving of cereal was once I weighed it :neutral_face:

    I was shocked at this too. My love eats a bowl of sugary cereal every morning (29 years old and he refuses to eat anything else for breakfast) and I used to eat it with him. He sits at the table with the milk and the box of cereal and free pours. So when I got my scale I decided to do a test. I asked him to pour his cereal and tell me how many servings he thinks it is. He guessed one and a half servings to two servings. We weighed it. It was about four and a half servings of cereal (1050 calories depending on the type of cereal he chooses that morning). I was completely shocked. It isn't even a meal that keeps him full all morning!!!! Even my favorite cereals in an actual serving isn't enough to keep me full. So, no more cereal for me!

    Also, my chicken. I used to think I was eating an actual serving. They say a deck of cards sized, heck that's not hard. Nope, weighed that bad boy out. I was consuming a good 200+ calories more then I was estimating.

    Oh and the day I found out my favorite salads were super high in calories. That was a sad day. :(
  • LifeInTheBikeLane
    LifeInTheBikeLane Posts: 345 Member
    pepperdove wrote: »
    I work at Starbucks, and I will tell you that any of our foods are pretty much going to kill your diet for the day. It's brutal.

    Hey, I lived off of those spinach feta wraps for four years. I discovered that making my own gourmet whipped cream with ristretto shots, mocha and carmel and pouring it in all of my drinks was what was killing my diets. Lol
  • Foodiethinking
    Foodiethinking Posts: 240 Member
    Pasta- am a total carboholic and I would have like a triple serving size. I am restrained nowadays, but still...
    Tortilla wraps- supposedly a lighter option to bread.. or maybe not..
    White sauce/flour - A base for a lots of recipes- mac and cheese included and that's without the actual cheese! White sauce has loooads of calories mainly down to the flour...
  • SuggaD
    SuggaD Posts: 1,369 Member
    Fig Newtons. In my head they were low fat and therefore not so bad. Wrong. Those little two packs at the register are 200 calories. I was also saddened by muffins, which I've pretty much given up because it's not worth it to me. Now, Starbucks is totally worth it to me, but then again I just get the tall size. That's the biggest learning curve...what is worth the calories? It teaches you what you really love.

    Make your own muffins at home. I bake muffins all the time. Regular sized ones (not mini) for around 120 calories each. Usually I have 2 for breakfast with some protein and fruit. Sub out the oil (use natural applesauce instead) and egg whites in place of eggs and save tons of calories but not taste. Some good recipes on pinterest.
  • 111YoYo111
    111YoYo111 Posts: 213 Member
    Lettuce wraps at Moxie's. The info needs to be doubles cuz they class it as an appetizer shared by 2 people.

    Also the variance in calories and carbs from one type of squash to another is quite remarkable.
  • clsxplor
    clsxplor Posts: 15 Member
    I was amazed when I found out that ground turkey has more calories than the leanest 96/4 ground beef, so I went back to using ground beef in my tacos!
  • Foodiethinking
    Foodiethinking Posts: 240 Member
    Ooh I forgot pastry. I love all pastry.. pies.. tarts.. pasties.. pork pies :'( I try to limit those foods now though
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Cheese and nuts. I love them, eat them, but they are pre-portioned now.

    Burgers from Dairy Queen, Carl's Jr. and Red Robin's

    Bagels

    Fruit platter from Cora

    Chips and fries

    Greek salad, caesar salad. I put on my own dressing now.
  • sugardetox
    sugardetox Posts: 149 Member
    Peanut butter. I still think that it is the greatest thing ever and I believe the phrase "I may be considering cheating on you with this Reese's" has been uttered to my husband once or twice. Thank God for PB2 so that I can still have a peanut butter smoothie in the morning!
  • sugardetox
    sugardetox Posts: 149 Member
    pepperdove wrote: »
    I work at Starbucks, and I will tell you that any of our foods are pretty much going to kill your diet for the day. It's brutal.

    Hey, I lived off of those spinach feta wraps for four years. I discovered that making my own gourmet whipped cream with ristretto shots, mocha and carmel and pouring it in all of my drinks was what was killing my diets. Lol

    Let me tell you that one great thing about leaving a job at Starbucks is that you don't drink it as much... mainly because nobody can make your drink as good as you could!
  • divergentbeing
    divergentbeing Posts: 2 Member
    It might sound dumb, but Oreos and Samoas. Two cookies is 140 calories... (I remember eating them by the sleeve).
    Nuts and avocados we were a huge surprise.
    Less surprising but still worse than I thought is fruit juice (a cup is not the same as 'a glass').
  • peter56765
    peter56765 Posts: 352 Member
    Trish12a wrote: »
    Snapeas. Delicious, but same calories as chips.

    OMG!! Seriously?? That is unbelievable. I never knew that.

    Not true. Snap peas are 35-40 calories for 100g (about 1 cup)
  • jnv7594
    jnv7594 Posts: 983 Member
    Also, granola. I love granola. I eat granola. In fact, I'm eating some right now. :) But it's pretty calorie dense for the small amount in a serving.
  • lemon629
    lemon629 Posts: 501 Member
    peter56765 wrote: »
    Trish12a wrote: »
    Snapeas. Delicious, but same calories as chips.

    OMG!! Seriously?? That is unbelievable. I never knew that.

    Not true. Snap peas are 35-40 calories for 100g (about 1 cup)

    The poster probably meant fried snap peas. I think I've seen them at Trader Joe's.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    edited January 2015
    jnv7594 wrote: »
    Also, just pie in general is a pretty big calorie bomb. I got to looking at their menu after I logged my dinner. The calorie count on most desert pies is insane.

    I agree. My husband and I go over to my mom's house for dinner once a week and she usually bakes or makes awesome homemade treats, which we indulge in, log, and move on. One week though she served a blah Mrs. Smith's frozen apple pie...the one with a crumble top. We ate it to be polite - and because we both love sweets - and when we logged it both of us were like what in the world?! It was 400 cal or nearly, per slice. Not a very big dessert and definitely not very good! I could have had a slice of really good cheesecake...2 scoops of gelato...almost three Cadbury eggs...lol

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